Retail and F&B developments remain popular investment choices in Bahrain as ‘experiential’ and ‘entertainment’ focused retail concepts are beginning to influence shopping centre designs, according to the H1 2017 Bahrain MarketView developed by CBRE.

A number of festival waterfront and neighbourhood retail projects are opening or currently under construction. The Avenues is set to open in late 2017 with 33,000 sq. m. GLA and The Oasis, a large regional shopping centre in a prominent location opposite the grand mosque in Juffair in 2018.

Heather Longden, Associate Director, CBRE Bahrain, said, “Retail and leisure are seen as the main drivers of tourism for the country and international retail operators, including The Avenues and Alshaya Group continue to work with the local market to evolve the offering.”

According to the CBRE report, the residential sector in Bahrain has experienced an undersupply situation for over 25 years with a housing shortage of approximately 75,000 units estimated in 2017. The majority of the shortage is in the low-tomiddle income segment catering to the needs of Bahraini families. Current demand in 2017 based on population statistics and typical household sizes is for 290,000 units while there are only 216,000 completed units across all property types in the market. An intensive government led strategy is underway to close the supply/demand gap with 40,000 units scheduled to be introduced under the housing plan by 2020.